Theme: What now? What next!

In the spirit of ideas worth spreading, TEDx is a program of local, self-organized events that bring people together to share a TED-like experience. At a TEDx event, TEDTalks video and live speakers combine to spark deep discussion and connection in a small group. These local, self-organized events are branded TEDx, where x = independently organized TED event. The TED Conference provides general guidance for the TEDx program, but individual TEDx events are self-organized (subject to certain rules and regulations).

Theater Rigiblick
Germaniastrasse 99
Zurich, Zürich (de), 8044
Switzerland

Bianca Pitt

Environmental Activist

Bianca Pitt is a full time mother of two very lively children. She is also an advisor to environmental charities, including ClientEarth, The Environmental Funders Network and The Sustainable Angle. She previously worked in the printing and packaging industry (Mayr-Melnhof), publishing (Macmillan) and corporate finance (van Tulleken, now Houlihan Lokey). Her quiet campaigning for the environment, including on topics such as climate change, clean air and plastics has lead to the realisation that with activism comes great happiness and hope for the future.

Claire Melamed

Sustainable Development Data Activist

Dr Claire Melamed is the CEO of the Global Partnership for Sustainable Development Data, heading up a global team based in five countries. She was previously Managing Director of the Overseas Development Institute, and in 2014, she worked in the office of the UN Secretary General, writing the report of the Independent Expert Advisory Group on the Data Revolution, "A World That Counts". Claire is based in London, has worked for a number of international NGOs and taught at the University of London and the Open University. Dr. Melamed has a PhD from the University of London, and can be found on Twitter at @clairemelamed.

Claudia Bluemhuber

Film Producer

Claudia Bluemhuber is CEO and Managing Partner of Silver Reel Partners. Silver Reel is based in Zurich and one of the leading international film financing and production companies. Since 2009 it has financed and produced a wide range of independently produced motion pictures. Over the years, Claudia has worked with a group of award-winning producers, directors and actors around the globe. The latest Silver Reel projects include Churchill, The Wife and Loving Vincent, which received an Oscar nomination ('18). She has over 20 years of experience in the media industry and 15 years in private equity and asset management. Silver Reel focusses on investment opportunities in the entertainment industry through both family office and institutional investors.

Danielle Town

Investor

Danielle Town is a New York Times bestselling author and Investing Practice expert who started out afraid of numbers and stock markets, until she discovered that, with a little knowledge and practice, her weaknesses were actually strengths. She wrote her book, Invested: How Warren Buffett and Charlie Munger Taught Me to Master My Mind, My Emotions, and My Money (with a Little Help from My Dad), with her investor father, Phil Town.

Dorothy Yeung

Dorothy Yeung, British-born pianist, is a world-wide music Producer for Universal Music, medici.tv, Verbier Festival and for artists such as Cecilia Bartoli and Anne-Sophie Mutter. Dorothy's expertise lies above all in creating innovative, live events in unusual locations. They are co-founders of More than Classic launched in 2018. They are inspired and driven to bring people together for new memorable experiences.

Eitan Chitayat

Creative Director

Eitan Chitayat is the founder and Creative Director of the global Natie Branding Agency. He is an award-winning brand-builder who's lived in Hong-Kong, London, New York and Boston and has been delivering advertising campaigns and brand identities for 20 years for the likes of Google, Apple, YouTube, Target, ELMA Art Complex Luxury Hotel and Facebook. His viral video, "I'm that Jew" is the subject of his talk.

Emma Turner

Director, Philanthropy Service

Emma runs the Philanthropy Service at Barclays Bank and has over 25 years experience in the field of philanthropy. The Service aims to engage, educate and support high net worth clients in their philanthropic journey. Emma had previously worked at Goldman Sachs where she was Executive Director of the Charitable Services Group in EMEA and Asia. Before that, she was Fundraiser and Marketing Manager for a major London charity. Emma is on the board of one charity in the UK and a charity in the USA.

Gary Tynan

Architect

Gary Tynan is an architect and the founding director of Studio 304 in London. The studio has a global reputation for innovative urban design. In 2017 their Sunken Bath Project was named ‘London’s Best House Extension’ at the London Don’t Move Improve Awards. Gary received his degree from the Edinburgh College of Art, is registered with the Royal Institute of British Architects and has worked at high-profile architecture studios in New York, Barcelona and London. Gary is passionate about urban, residential design and the challenge to provide higher quality living spaces in our modern cities.

Gregg Robins

Singer-songwriter

Singer-songwriter Gregg Robins has received critical acclaim for his music, which reflects his striving to find meaning and joy in difficult and painful experiences, whether in his own life or in our society. An Oxford-educated native New Yorker, he has spent the last three decades in Europe and Russia, as a leading wealth advisor and professor of business. His passion for lifelong learning, and embracing and overcoming challenges, led him to develop the "live messy lives" philosophy, which he shares with young people worldwide.

Irina Pak

Irina Pak, Korean Russian-born, violinist, member of the Tonhalle Orchestra Zürich and international soloist, has a passionate, self-confident mastery of her instrument combined with an electrifying stage presence. Diversity & innovation looms large in her artistic self-conception and she is open-minded about unconventional concepts.

Laura Jansen

Refugee Support Organizer and Singer Songwriter

Laura Jansen is an award winning Dutch/American singer songwriter. Her own music has taken her around the world and she has collaborated with artists such as Armin van Buuren, Keane, Snowpatrol and many others. Her life took a remarkable turn when she was confronted with the current migration crisis in her hometown of Amsterdam. Compelled to act she became part of a team of concerned citizens caring for arriving refugees at the train station at night. Upon visiting the island of Lesvos, Greece at the height of the crisis, she co-founded Movement on the Ground, an NGO that has since been active full time in the refugee camps providing humanitarian support of all kinds. Laura lived on Lesvos for 2.5 years, creating programs and implementing projects to support the needs of the refugee population. She now combines music and advocacy by using her public platform to engage her audience in debate and action.

Meng Tian

Musician

Meng Tian is a chinese-born, swiss-based musical artist. While the experience of her immigration to Switzerland inspired her debut album in 2008, her latest double album written in both English and Chinese tells the story of a well-travelled performer and showcases a more mature approach to songwriting. With a BA in Political Science she has worked extensively in the fields of journalism and communication for news outlets such as CNBC Europe, the swiss public sector and a NGO working towards sustainable agriculture in Africa. Meng Tian is interested in stories, telling them through the universal language of music and ultimately reaching people's hearts.

Mohsin Khan

Community Expert

Mohsin Khan, born in the Dharavi Slum in Mumbai, India has recently received his bachelor’s Degree in Business and Commerce from Rizvi College of Mumbai University. Alongside his studies, Mohsin works on research relating to social issues like male prostitution not only in India but around the world.

Nick Bubb

Conservation Activist

Nick Bubb heads up Global Development at Fauna & Flora International (FFI), the world's oldest international wildlife conservation charity. FFI supports a great number of conservation programs in 47 countries, which integrate scientific expertise and local community engagement. Nick's varied background includes significant time spent as an: engineer, professional ocean racer, sports sponsorship expert and wealth manager. After an expedition to Antarctica in 2012 and seeing the first-hand effects of climate change, Nick decided to leave the world of financial management behind and combine all his skills, experiences & networks, and dedicate himself to environmental causes.

Nikos Kariotoglou

Robotic Camera Engineer

Nikos Kariotoglou is CEO and co-founder of Seervision AG, which works on automation technologies that turn robotic camera systems into professional camera operators. Nikos received his Ph.D. in Stochastic Optimization-Based Control from the Automatic Control Laboratory of ETH Zurich in 2015 where since 2011 he has supervised and been involved in more than 10 research projects on real-time camera and lens control.

Nora Kersten

Nora is a yoga teacher who lives in Zürich, Switzerland. She found her passion with yoga. Next to regular classes, Nora organizes special events, she teaches yoga instructors, and together with her Husband, a Fitness instructor, she developed a new class which is a combination of yoga and high intensity exercises.

Roland Siegwart

Professor in Robotics

Roland Siegwart is professor for autonomous mobile robots at ETH Zurich, founding co-director of the Wyss Zurich and member of the board of directors of multiple high tech companies. He studied mechanical engineering at ETH, spent ten years as professor at EPFL Lausanne, held visiting positions at Stanford University and NASA Ames and was vice president of ETH Zurich. He is co-founder of half a dozen spin-off companies and a strong promoter of innovation and entrepreneurship in Switzerland.

Steve Papermaster

Entrepreneur

Steve G. Papermaster is a world renowned technology entrepreneur, public policy expert, global speaker and author. He is the founder, chairman and CEO of Nano Vision, a company dedicated to dramatically accelerating the development of cures for a vast range of cancers, infectious diseases and health conditions. Steve was appointed, and served two terms, as a senior advisor to former US President George W Bush on domestic and global strategy for innovation, technology, healthcare and science. As a presidential advisor, he helped lead the National Nanotechnology Initiative, the Human Genome Project and the White House Fellow, one of America's most prestigious programs for leadership and public service.

Thomas Egli

Environmental Scientist

Straddling the precarious position between science and education, Thomas Egli has aimed to share his passion for marine biology with nerds and city- dwellers alike. With a childhood in Calgary and roots in Switzerland, he somehow managed to nurture a love affair with the ocean. Counting sea cucumbers in Canada, tagging sea turtles in Costa Rica, chasing dolphins in New Zealand, and canning tuna in the Maldives are all on his resume. Thomas is a veteran trip leader for National Geographic Expeditions and has led adventure tours to five continents. After a career spanning 15 years as an environmental interpreter, commercial scuba diver, dancer, and educator, Thomas aimed for new challenges at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (ETH). Armed with a master's degree in Environmental Science, he now develops and manages small-scale fishery improvement projects in developing countries with Blueyou Consulting in Zürich.

Tom Hofmann

Cyber Security Specialist

Tom Hofmann is a cyber-security enthusiast with a passion for innovation. For the last 18 years, he implemented projects from the Finnish polar circle to the megacity of Tokyo. His focus lies on why (cyber) security doesn't become more efficient and effective as technology progresses, and on how human-centered innovation can be leveraged to achieve a joint optimization of complex social and technical systems. He holds an Executive Diploma in IT Business Management from the renowned Universität of St. Gallen, Switzerland. Besides his passion for technology and innovation, he is also engaged in various inclusion and diversity projects, like the Ladies in Mechanical and Electrical Studies (LIMES) Researchers initiative at ETH Zürich.

Willemijn Kappers

Photographer and Artist

Willemijn Kappers lives in the Netherlands. Since finishing her Masters degree she has been working in finance, in the financial district of Amsterdam. Ten years ago, Willemijn started learning to be a photographer. Her subjects are only portraits, and only people. That is where Willemijn's heart is, with the people. She created several series of photos, e.g. “Liberty” and “There is no Difference”. Her series are very well received by the public.